Peak Travel Times

When to Travel

International Travel  in the Northern hemisphere is divided into 3 seasons

Low season November to mid December and again from Jan to the end of March

Shoulder season April to June and September to November and

High Season June to September and mid December to January

The outbound date determines the season. 

Reverse the  seasons for the southern hemisphere 

Avoid days leading up to holidays and midweek travel is usually better than the weekend.

When to Travel

Travel Tips

Frequent Flier Miles

So you have been saving all those miles only to discover that you can never get a seat or the carrier has upped the ante and is now requiring twice the number.  Frustrating but understandable as the airlines are scrambling for every cent and having a bunch of non paying passengers does not help their bottom line.  What to do? Check with your awards program and see what other options they offer.  Perhaps you can use your miles to pay for hotels and cars and  then purchase a discount air line ticket with the money you saved on these items. American Express has a huge selection of awards for dining, entertainment and shopping; 5000 miles will get you a $50 gift  certificate from such diverse retailers as The Home Depot and Bloomindales.  Use them for your gift lists and then treat yourself to an airline ticket with money saved.  If, however, you simply have to get that airline ticket try traveling in non peak periods and call the  awards desk late at night. Remember the airlines only load fares 330 days out so choose your dates with that in mind.